Software Sequels Are Surpassing

March 15, 1991|By Dennis Lynch.

Sequels have gotten a bad name lately, thanks to lousy movies like

``Rocky V`` and to overly hyped books like the still-in-the-making follow-up to ``Gone With the Wind.`` It`s hard to find a movie or book sequel that surpasses its original. Those few that do-like ``The Godfather, Part II`` or

``Huckleberry Finn``-are the exceptions.

In the software world, however, it`s the rare program that does not outperform its predecessor. With the notable exception of the dBase IV, a bug- ridden and sloppily constructed ``improvement`` to dBase III Plus, most new releases of software are quantum leaps forward.

The reason is obvious: As technology improves, and as more powerful personal computers become available, software changes to take advantage of the new advances. If you want the most bang for your buck, you should buy the latest version of your favorite program.

Nowadays, most major software manufacturers are releasing new versions of popular programs about once a year. Unlike the new-model releases from carmakers, where there often seems to be little change and even less improvement from year to year, new software releases are almost always significant upgrades well worth investing in.

Following is an in-depth look at three of the most popular updates currently available. The prices listed are suggested retail; you should be able to get significant discounts at software stores. In addition, if you already own a previous version of the software, special upgrades are available direct from the manufacturer at special low prices.

Release 7.0 is the latest incarnation of a popular program that promises to fulfill almost all your personal financial needs. As in previous years, the current version offers easy-to-use ways to keep track of your budget; to handle multiple bank accounts; to chart the performance of your stocks and bonds; and to determine your net worth. It`s the Swiss Army knife of money programs.

But the program is more than just useful; it`s also fun-a word that usually isn`t associated with the drudgery of record-keeping. Managing Your Money makes routine tasks palatable by interspersing program screens with cogent and often witty advice from Andrew Tobias, a nationally known writer of books like ``Money Angles.``

Moreover, this year`s edition offers numerous enhancements to already existing features. For example, paying bills electronically, using a service called CheckFree, has been made smoother. Bringing in current stock price information from Dow Jones, using an add-on product called Managing the Market, is much easier. And the program now takes advantage of VGA graphics to make more attractive graphs of your financial situation.

Even slicker are new features that offer financial advice on an array of topics. For example, the program can determine whether now is the right time for you to refinance a mortgage. It even can predict your life expectancy and thus offer advice about how much insurance your should be carrying.

The program does this by using some nifty artificial-intelligence techniques. Here`s how it works in one example: To determine your life expectancy, the program asks you a series of questions about your age, health and lifestyle. Then it asks about the future financial needs of your spouse and children, such as whether you still have kids to put through college.

Based upon your answers, the program offers suggestions about the minimum amount of life insurance you need. It even will show you a chart that lists what your monthly premium payments should be. All this can be done in less than five minutes.

Sure to be one of the most controversial new predictors in the program is what is called the Bullishness Index, which is meant to offer suggestions about the right time to buy stocks. This module asks a number of questions about the current state of the stock market and then rates on a scale of 0 to 10 whether it`s a good time to buy.

Be warned, though: This feature is loaded with disclaimers, and Andrew Tobias accepts no responsibility if you end up buying high and selling low. Nonetheless, the new artificial-intelligence segments of the program are fascinating and can add a high degree of fun to the all-too-mundane activity of keeping track of your financial records.

The Writer`s Pack with Grammatik IV (Reference Software; IBM; $149).

When grammar checkers first came out, they were ridiculed in much of the press for their technical lapses. A common ploy of reviewers was to run, say, the Gettysburg Address through a grammar checker and then poke fun at the

``errors`` the program located.

And indeed, the first generation of editing software left much to be desired, often flagging as mistakes prose that was perfectly good, while too often ignoring egregious errors.